10 January 2014

Army Ranger Joshua Hargis lay braced, tangled and constrained by tubing in his hospital bed. Yet bound by duty, he managed to raise his hand in full salute as his commander awarded him the Purple Heart.

"At that point, I knew what I was supposed to do," Hargis said as recounted the moment to NBC News. "So I hold my arm up. It felt stuck a little bit, so I started tuggin' on it and I pulled it all the way up and, you know, presented my salute as best as I could."

The moment made grown men at his hospital bedside weep and it instantly became viral after Hargis’ wife, Taylor, shared the photo on her Facebook page.